Modern attic ventilation systems usually include outlet vents high on a roof through which hot air escapes from the attic, coupled with inlet vents in the soffit or eve regions of the roof. The outlet vents might, for instance, comprise ridge vents that extend along and cover a slotted roof ridge while inlet vents might include a plurality of louvered vents covering openings cut in the soffit. As hot air escapes the attic through the outlet vents by means of convection, which may be aided by vent fans in some cases, it is replaced by cooler outside air that is drawn into the attic through the inlet vents.
Many styles and configurations of inlet vents for attic spaces have been designed and used in the past. These include independent louvered soffit vents, continuous strips of louvered soffit vent, ventilating material installed behind or atop fascia boards, and complicated louvered fascia vents. A need persists, however, for an inlet vent that is effective, easily installed by the common carpenter, virtually undetectable when installed, and possessing a net free ventilating area (NFA) that compliments that of a companion roof vent such as a ridge vent. It is to the provision of such an inlet vent that the present invention is primarily directed.